Questions and answers

Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for ��˿�� to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-26393

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 19 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the planned minimum land size threshold required for farmers to receive agricultural payments under the Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Bill, including what assessment it undertook to arrive at the planned threshold of 3ha, and what evidence supports this decision.

The adaptive framework under the new Bill will enable tailored provisions and support to be implemented to support our food producers and we continue to co-develop effective policies to deliver the Vision for Agriculture. As a framework Bill it will not set thresholds which could restrict future flexibility.

How these powers will be used are set out in the Bills associated Policy Memorandum and Explanatory notes .

Future eligibility criteria will be co-developed with partners through the Ag Reform Programme.

Question reference: S6W-26432

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 19 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding has been allocated to preventative and early interventions in each year since 2016, also broken down by NHS board area.

The Scottish Government does not hold the detail of this funding. Local decisions on how to allocate funding is the responsibility of NHS Boards.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) collects data and provides analysis on NHS spending and the cost of running services across the 14 territorial health boards, the Golden Jubilee, and the State Hospital. This information is published annually in the Scottish Health Service Costs release (‘Costs Book’).

The data has a breakdown of Hospital, Community, Family Health Services, and subsequent breakdown into sub-categories, however it does not specifically provide funding in preventative and early interventions (also note the difference between expenditure per Cost Book and funding per the question).

Question reference: S6W-26431

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 16 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to NHS Borders to ensure that the 18-week child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) waiting time standard is met.

For all NHS Boards including NHS Borders, tailored support is provided giving access to professional specialist advice, making sure that they have robust plans place and are continually monitoring their implementation. Regular and structured engagement with NHS Borders at official level also takes place regularly.

In addition all Boards have been asked to submit trajectories setting out a timeline for clearing any long waits. These will be updated annually and used to inform further targeted improvement work to ensure all Boards meet CAMHS waiting times standards.

Question reference: S6W-26430

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 16 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what information and signposting to alternative support is communicated to families and young people in cases where a referral to child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) has been rejected.

We expect NHS Boards to follow the , which sets out that CAMHS services " provide support and personalised, meaningful signposting to the child/young person and their family/carers, with informed consent, to access other services within the children and young people's service network, in cases where families' needs are best met elsewhere."

Appropriate redirection and alternative support will vary across NHS Boards depending on the services available locally, and the needs of the child or young person involved. For many children and young people, such support is likely to be community based, and should be easily and quickly accessible. Since 2020, we have provided local authorities with over £50 million to develop and deliver mental health and wellbeing supports and services, with a further £15 million committed for 2024-25.

As specified in the , there should be strong links between CAMHS and the community supports in all areas, with services taking a whole-system approach to ensure that children and young people experience streamlined pathways and get the right support at the right time.

Question reference: S6W-26429

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 16 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what support is available to young people whose referral to child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) has been rejected.

Question reference: S6T-01924

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 15 April 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government when it will next review the New Build Heat Standard.

Question reference: S6O-03251

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether it will provide an update on the waiting time for external stakeholder parliamentary events sponsored by ��˿��.

Question reference: S6W-25843

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 12 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have been convicted of livestock worrying since the increased penalties were introduced in November 2021.

The worrying of livestock by dogs is completely unacceptable and is something the Scottish Government takes very seriously and recognises the distress and the serious welfare and financial implications it may cause.

From November 2021 to September 2023, 21 accused have been convicted with, at least one, protection of livestock from dogs charge. In all the cases, the charges were under the dogs (protection of livestock) act 1953 section 1(1)&(6).

Question reference: S6W-25734

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 23 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 5 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to people with optic discs showing signs of papilloedema, whether cancer pathways exist in all NHS boards for optometrists to refer patients directly to secondary care.

Community optometrists across Scotland will normally refer patients who require secondary care directly to the hospital eye service in the relevant Health Board. Patients with suspected papilloedema require an emergency referral in common with some other ophthalmic conditions. Pathways for direct emergency referrals from community optometrists exist in all Health Boards in Scotland and are used regularly.

Question reference: S6W-25733

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 23 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 5 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what recent steps have been taken to improve diagnosis times for those affected by brain tumours.

The Scottish Government published our ten year along with an initial three year Cancer Action Plan ( ) in June 2023.

Over the next 10 years, our strategic aim is to improve cancer survival and provide excellent, equitably accessible care. The Strategy and Plan take a comprehensive approach to improving patient pathways from prevention and diagnosis through to treatment and post-treatment care. We continue to place an emphasis on the less survivable cancers, including brain cancer, and improving their outcomes.

As part of this strategy, we developed a new Earlier Cancer Diagnosis Vision.

The vision includes continuing to deliver our Detect Cancer Earlier Programme, working with primary care clinicians to ensure they have direct access to diagnostic tests and quality education sources, as well as developing public campaigns to educate and empower those with possible symptoms of cancer to act early.

In addition to this work and in order to support radiology diagnostic capacity, we have funded mobile scanners to provide additional capacity for MRI and CT supporting cancer patients across NHS Scotland.